Five days after the general election threw up a hung verdict; uncertainty loomed over who will form the next government in Britain. Meanwhile, kingmaker Liberal Democrats, who are bargaining hard with the Conservatives and Labour, said that power-sharing talks are approaching a critical and final phase. Prime Minister Gordon Brown's dramatic announcement to quit as the Labour head in a bid to keep his party in power brightened prospects of a deal with Nick Clegg-led Liberal Democrats, who had demanded that he step down before negotiations are held on government formation. Conservative chief David Cameron, said that it was decision time for the centrist Liberal Democrats, who have been demanding electoral reforms, and hoped that they would make the right decision. Liberal Democrats are known to be ideologically closer to Labour than the Conservatives. Formal negotiations between Labour and Liberal Democrats commenced in the House of Commons today, following Clegg's talks with the Conservatives, who have emerged as the single largest party with 306 seats in the 650-member House, 20 short of a simple majority. The ruling labour secured 258 seats while Lib Dems bagged 57 in the May 6 polls. Liberal Democrats have negotiated with the Conservatives for four days and moved for talks with Labour after Brown announced his decision to resign as his party's chief.